tonight. if you don't come tonight, maybe next time. >> that's joe jonas all grown-up. you can see him live and in person tonight at the regency ballroom in san francisco. we have all the information on our website. also a big night for us here at abc. tonight is the first night of the new fall tv season. premiering on abc 7, the 13th season of "dancing with the stars." celebrities including nancy grace, ron artest. and perhaps the most controversial contestant the show has seen, clichy-sous-bois. it should be good catch the -- chaz bono. it should be good. tonight at 8:00 followed by the 4th season premiere of -- of course we'll have more tomorrow, including highlights from tonight's "moneyball"

premiere in oakland with brad pitt. there's a lot going on go to facebook. us a tweet, us a a a e-mail.mi hope the case brings that to an end. >> these are wild animals, unpredictable, predatory, thinking animals that when they decide to act out there's nothing a trainer can do. >> the family has spent a long time hoping nothing would happen like happened to their daughter, wife, and sister. >> sea world says the three safety citations against it were unfounded. it's also hoping to either

eliminate it or reduce a $75,000 fine. bob hope's widow dolores hope has passed away at the age of 102. the couple was married for 69 years when he died in 2003. dolores was a nightclub singer when they met in the 1930s. she mostly stayed home with their four children but also joined him overseas to entertain u.s. troops during world war ii. dolores hope is being remembered as the first lady of the uso. another passing to note this morning. the creator of the comic strip ziggy has died. tom wilson sr. first published the hard luck character back in 1969. now ziggy and his parade of pets appear in 500 newspapers. ziggy can also be seen in books, calendars, and also greeting cards. wilson died of pneumonia at a cincinnati hospital. he was 80 years old. he'd also won an emmy back in 1993 when ziggy starred in an abc christmas special.

>> i loved ziggy when i was a little kid. his son actually now manages the comic strip, which is nice to keep it in the family. here is your tuesday forecast. windy from the dakotas to the western great lakes. expect showers in fargo, minneapolis, duluth, and green bay. spotty showers in the northeast. thunderstorms from the carolinas to tennessee and northern florida. scattered showers across the rockies. >> 63 degrees in billings, 76 in salt lake city, and 82 degrees in albuquerque. dallas heats up to 90 degrees, kansas city 80, and minneapolis 67. 69 in boston. 70 here in new york city. and 86 degrees in new orleans. last week you may have seen a story here on "world news now" about a couple celebrating their 80th wedding anniversary. well, this couple is getting close. >> fred and hazel marcone just marked their 70th anniversary. they celebrated with their family, which includes five children, 19 grandchildren, 17 great grandchildren, and one great great-grandchild. >> that's what i want to know.

they say their secret to a long marriage is to take the bumps and work them out. good advice. so congratulations to them. >> some people have a difficult time taking those words. we'll be right back. ♪ looks like we made it ♪ look how far we've come now, baby ♪ ♪ look how far we've come, my baby ♪ ♪ we might have taken the long way sthoets ♪ ♪ we knew we'd get there someday ♪

anzing feat an amazing feat has been completed by a talented team of surgeons in london. all so two little girls could live normal lives. >> the twins were born joined at

the head. and after four operations totaling nearly 40 hours they were finally separated. the bbc's fergus walsh reports. >> reporter: this is now togetherness for ritag and rital, sharing the same cot. but these twins have undergone an extraordinary journey to be physically separated. born joined at the head, doctors say they would probably have died unless they underwent surgery. their parents, both doctors from sudan, can now each hold one daughter in their arms. for them it's a miracle. what was it like when the twins were able to look each other in the eye for the first time? >> it was very -- it was a really great moment in our life i will never forget. i hope that they will get a normal life and treated as normal human beings, and to forget all of the suffering times.

>> reporter: looking at the twins now, it's remarkable to think that just a month ago they were joined at the head. it's still too early to be sure, but there are no signs at this stage that either has suffered any neurological damage as a result of the separation. this was the huge surgical team at great almond street hospital who carried out four operations spread out over four months, first dividing the veins and arteries, then growing new skin to cover the skull, and finally this, the moment when the twins were separated. >> there are so many things that you have to get right in the right order. separating the blood vessels, making sure the brain is safe, reconstructing the skin. and it really has been a tribute to the team, i think, that we've been able to plan this in such detail and keep them safe throughout. >> reporter: a charity, facing the world, paid the medical

costs and says the twins should soon be well enough to be flown home, with the hope of a bright future. fergus walsh, bbc news, at great allman street hospital. >> that's some amazing medicine. and those twins are so lucky. only about 1 in 10 million survive an operation like that. >> and hard to believe, they're almost a year old, and they've never looked at each other eye to eye. i mean, it makes sense, but it's just not something you'd necessarily think about. and conjoined twins so rare as well, 1 out of 2 1/2 million. >> and i know twins do look at each other from very early on so, it must have been a unique experience, even for a baby that young. yeah. well, coming up, poking fun at charlie sheen, and he is taking it like a man. >> all the excitement as the new season of "dancing with the stars" premieres. stay tuned for the "skinny." stars" premieres.abababababababú

♪ skinny ♪ so skinny and now it is time for "the skinny." "dancing with the stars" back for its 13th season. did you get a chance to watch? >> i don't really get into "dancing with the stars" so much.

i actually really enjoyed it. >> pretty compelling people this time. and it was chock full of celebrities both on the dance floor as well as out in the crowd, including the kardashians. there you see nancy grace. really showing her stuff. strutting her stuff there last night. quite a lot of big names. is that ricki lake right there? >> no, that's rob kardashian. >> that's right. >> his sisters you can see were in the audience. kim was crying and then khloe was actually yelling at the judges. they hear a voice from the audience and it's her because she likes to talk. chaz bono of course stole the show. >> look at him go. >> a lot of excitement. >> the judges loved his entertaining. i don't know if his dance moves -- i don't know how great they were. but a performer. just like his parents. right. and abc actually believes there may be some crazies out there who have a thing against chaz bono. so reports say that network execs have actually taken precautions by ordering security for chaz. similarly, they've done the same thing for bristol palin. >> she had an anthrax scare of some kind.

well, it seems everyone's talking about charlie sheen again. he's back in the news. for the right reasons, i guess you could say this time. he's not, you know, doing his -- >> winning. >> winning but not doing and saying weird things. here he is at his roast, which aired last night. and a lot of celebrities there. william shatner. there you saw kate walsh. they really let him have it. and i have to say he took it really well. >> i thought it was really interesting that mike tyson was there roasting him. one of the jokes here by seth macfarland. he said how do you get fired from "two and a half men"? they haul you in and say, sorry, you don't suck enough? that was supposed to be one of the highlights of the night. >> i was actually invited to the roast. for me it was a lot to fly all the way -- >> you were invited out to be one of the goddesses. >> yes. >> you turned -- >> i turned down both, actually. but they aired some of my interview in the roast. >> yes. >> so i made a cameo without even knowing it until i watched part of the roast last night. >> and we have a new star on hollywood -- oh, no, actually, charlie sheen still. >> also the lawsuit.

there's a lot of reports that this lawsuit that he has against warner brothers and chuck lorrie may be done soon and that he could end up a very wealthy man. one report over 100 million. so it could be a lot of money. >> now, we also have jon cryer, the actor. he has received the 2,449th star on the hollywood walk of fame. >> but here he is from the season premiere of "two and a half men," which everyone has been anticipating. and there's ashton. and charlie was hit by a subway and killed. so the opening scene is a funeral where a lot of charlie's old women are gathered around. >> they have their own little roast on the sitcom. >> what else do they have to say? >> i feel the need to thank chuck lorrie and lee aaronson. when it came time to make the ultimate decision, which was someplace that nobody wanted to go, did something that i -- in my belief saved my friend charlie sheen's life. >> jon cryer thanked charlie

sheen for being such a good partner on the show and then actually thanked warner brothers and cbs for intervening. and he feels like charlie getting fired actually saved his life. he came out there and made quite a statement. >> and the women -- we thought we were going to the women that were at the funeral of charlie. they're saying that he gave them all kinds of diseases. >> sexually transmitted diseases. it was as raunchy as it gets for the season premiere of "two and a half men." but in true charlie sheen character what else would you expect, right? >> we didn't get to the salahis. >> we'll talk about the salahis later. >> when we return, we'll talk about when teachers are really the stars. stay with us.

here are some stories to watch today on abc news. asian stock markets took a hit this morning as investors react to the debt problem in greece and italy's credit rating. and the pentagon's don't ask, don't tell policy for gays in the military was lifted at midnight. now service men and women may

serve in the armed forces without hiding their sexuality. and finally, our favorite story -- >> favorite story -- >> of the day. we've got to work on that. >> we're just awful. our timing's off, everything. students are head back to school this month. some are getting new teachers. >> while others may be taking a class with a familiar professor. either way those teachers are taking the country's greatest natural resource and helping it grow. here's abc's john donvan. >> reporter: in rooms like these across the land teachers spend more waking hours with our kids than anyone outside the home, yet boy, are teachers ever in the firing line these days. complained about as the problem, undermined as easily replaceable. but isn't it also true, maybe more true as they said at the white house -- >> he's the best. >> reporter: -- that millions of us as kids had that little moment where it was a teacher who made the difference, who showed that someone believed in us? from oprah's fourth grade teacher who made her feel she mattered just by letting her lay

out the graham crackers -- ♪ change the world one child at a time ♪ >> reporter: -- to the many testimonials people put up on youtube often set to music. ♪ i love my teacher >> reporter: to stories told at the white house like lee wono, a surgeon, and al sidelecki, his teacher. their voices can heard in the story corps project on npr where the doctor had called his teacher years later to say thanks for the inspiration and then you hear the teacher say -- >> it made me feel really important, that i had that influence on you. lately, i almost am afraid to say that i'm a teacher to some people. but i'm not because you called me. i'm a teacher, and i'm going to help as many people as i can. >> reporter: so maybe teachers are in the crossfire, but there are millions of those good kinds of stories, including that of an eighth-grader in yonkers, new york, and the nun who convinced him that he could conquer his

fear of public speaking, allowing me to now say john donvan, abc news, washington. >> what a handsome young boy. >> and i have to give a shout out to al silecki. i actually know him. he was a teacher at my middle school in medford, new jersey. memorial middle school. congratulations to him. >> teachers are so important. and now i have two little ones going off to school soon, reliving it all again. >> this is our question of the day, wnnfans.com. look at you. >> i'm everything today. >> more insomniacs get their news from "world news now" than from any other source. >> more insomniacsne

this morning on "world news now," critical connection. researchers discover the strongest link yet showing diabetics are more likely to develop dementia. >> now doctors want to know how

the blood sugar disorder can impact their brain and lead to irreversible damage. >> it's tuesday september 20th. good morning, everyone. i'm andrea canning. >> and i'm linsey davis. rob and tanya are off this morning. this medical research is an eye opener for the millions of americans with diabetes, and at the same time it's opening a new door for dementia research because insulin might be part of the future treatment for alzheimer's disease. also this morning, federal investigators want to know why a pilot involved in last friday's tragic air race accident may have passed out before the crash. it's just one of many big questions in reno. and later this half hour, all the excitement as the new season of "dancing with the stars" begins. nancy grace is among the contestants, and you'll see how she got ready for a different career step. but first, a troubling connection between two of the

world's most devastating diseases. >> we are learning that diabetes can rob the mind of memory and lead to alzheimer's disease. abc's jim avila has the details. >> reporter: it's the most comprehensive study of the suspected link between diabetes and dementia. 1,000 diabetes patients over age 60 in japan were tracked for 15 years. and the conclusion, seniors with diabetes are nearly twice as likely as the rest of the population to develop symptoms of dementia. >> i think we would have a -- you know, a potential breakthrough in improving the lives of patients and families with alzheimer's. >> reporter: the ramifications are huge because nearly 26 million adults and children have diabetes nationwide. and 80 million are prediabetic. what is the link between the two? doctors aren't sure yet. but they do know sugar has a damaging effect on both the nervous and vascular systems. >> the connection between diabetes and dementia is somewhat broad. diabetes has long been known to

be a risk factor for hardening the arteries, and hardening the arteries as it affects the brain in turn can cause strokes, mini or otherwise, and lead to what's now being called vascular dementia. >> and the next step? understanding if reducing sugar by taking insulin could help with the symptoms of alzheimer's. >> the idea that insulin might actually improve brain functioning in people with alzheimer's disease really is a novel approach to treating the dementia of alzheimer's disease. >> reporter: research is already under way for insulin therapy for alzheimer's. jim avila, abc news, new york. >> and patients that are certainly excited to see this kind of research happening, one statistic they point out is about six times more is spent on aids research than alzheimer's. >> and there's a lot of fear that as the number of alzheimer's cases skyrocket that medicaid and medicare can't keep up. so this is really becoming a national problem. >> exactly. a group of religious leaders has returned to the u.s., confident that the american

hikers held in iran will soon be released. group members met over the weekend with iranian president ahmadinejad and other senior leaders. bail was set last week for shane bauer and josh fattal, but their release appears to be hung up on bureaucracy inside iran's legal system. washington is putting new pressure on pakistan after a terror attack last week on the u.s. embassy. abc's nick schifrin reports from peshawar. >> reporter: in the aftermath of an attack in afghanistan the u.s. has never been more frustrated with pakistan. the u.s. says militants in pakistan used this building in kabul to launch rockets into the u.s. embassy. the u.s. also says the same militants blew up a massive bomb two days before that injured 77 u.s. soldiers. the militants are known as the haqqani network and the u.s. is angry with pakistan for not preventing them from crossing into afghanistan. >> we seek to have the pakistani government place greater pressure on the haqqani network. >> it's tough when you're trying to fight an insurgency that has

a lot of support outside your own national borders. >> reporter: the u.s. wants the pakistani army to expand its operations to attack the haqqani network. but pakistan has refused. the u.s. says pakistan sometimes allies with the haqqanis, including this attack on the indian embassy in kabul. pakistan says it can't attack the haqqanis because that would increase violence inside pakistan. >> the united states has asked the army to be very aggressive in north waziristan. do you think that kind of aggression that the u.s. has asked for would help fight the militants? >> this is our country. these are our people. these are our problems. we will go into north waziristan if we want to go for our domestic reasons. >> reporter: but the u.s. fears that until pakistan goes after the haqqanis there will be more attacks like this in the heart of kabul. nick schifrin, abc news, peshawar, pakistan. some sad news in the case of a nursing student missing in

california since may. police have now confirmed that human remains recovered over the weekend are those of 26-year-old michelle le. but they aren't saying the cause or manner of le's death. a former friend who knew le from their high school days was arrested this month and charged with the murder. there has been a tenth death in the air show tragedy in reno, nevada. last week's accident was the first in the event's 47-year history that killed spectators. and now investigators want to know if something may have happened to that pilot mid-air. abc's david wright reports from reno. >> reporter: it all happened so fast. the spectators barely had time to duck. >> we didn't have time to be terrified. it was just so fast. >> reporter: 59 people were hurt badly enough to be sent to the hospital. five are still critical. ten died. the p-51 mustang that crashed was 67 years old and heavily modified. >> we cut ten feet off the wings.

>> reporter: the pilot was 74. veteran stuntman jimmy leeward posted this video on youtube in june. >> the systems aren't proven yet. we think they're going to be okay. >> reporter: one possible problem, mechanical failure. in some photos a thin sliver of the tail, crucial for maintaining balance, appears to be missing. another, that the pilot blacked out. federal investigators are also looking at the broader question. how safe was this race to begin with? the pilots of these experimental planes take their lives in their hands. did the spectators know they were doing so too? pilot john parker is the same age as jimmy leeward and every bit as seasoned. >> the jimmy leeward incident was a tragic accident, but that's all it was, was a tragic accident. and should the incident have happened ten seconds sooner or ten seconds later, you wouldn't be here. >> reporter: the reno air race was already the last of its kind. many here expect that friday may

have been the last, period. david wright, abc news, reno. president obama is focusing on foreign policy today, with meetings at the u.n. here in new york. yesterday the president presented his proposal for cutting the federal deficit. among the more controversial ideas is a plan to hike taxes on wealthy americans. republicans are calling the proposal class warfare. meanwhile, a group of protesters is taking their anger at wall street to wall street. they've been demonstrating in new york's financial district since the weekend. and many say they want the protests to continue all week long. one protester told us the group is inspired by the demonstrations in egypt and the changes that they were able to bring about. wendy's is looking to boost sagging sales by reinventing its old-fashioned hamburgers for the first time in 42 years. so where's the beef this time? it's showing up in the chain's classic burger starting next monday. it will now have a thicker beef patty, extra cheese, red onions, crinkled pickles, and a buttered bun. the burger will be called dave's hot and juicy, named after

wendy's late founder, dave thomas. and maybe you'll need some ketchup for that burger. heinz has just the answer for you. it's new so-called dip and squeeze packets. you can either peel the top off and dip your food in or tear off the end and squeeze the ketchup out. it's the first redesign of the classic ketchup packet since it was created in 1968. fast food chains will start offering them soon, and they'll be sold in stores for the first time. and hallelujah. >> right. heinz executives often joke that it was created in 1968 and the complaints started in 1969. >> i've been complaining my whole life about those darn packets. i can't stand them. >> and now you have the two options. you can either squeeze it or peel it back. >> perfect. and what about when you're driving? maybe you can -- >> well, you probably shouldn't. >> you probably shouldn't at all. >> they shouldn't condone that, driving. >> and squeezing ketchup. yeah. here's a look at your weather.

thunderstorms in the south from tallahassee to atlanta, nashville and raleigh. chance of showers from d.c. to new england. showers with winds topping 40 miles an hour across the upper midwest and the dakotas. thunderstorms in the four corners region of the southwest. >> a sizzling 102 degrees in phoenix. 71 in colorado springs. and 74 in seattle. mostly 70s from omaha to detroit and from new york to atlanta. 86 degrees in new orleans and 90 degrees in dallas. now the car that might have plenty of hip-hop artists and other jewelry lovers jealous this morgan. >> yeah, check out the world's first gold jewelry car. it was unveiled yesterday in india as a tribute to 5,000 years of indian jewelry making. >> the car is the handiwork of 30 craftsmen. they used nearly 180 pounds of gold, more than 30 pounds of silver and gemstones to create it. >> the price tag -- any guesses here? just over $4.5 million. so handle with care. you don't want any fender-benders or anything. you certainly don't want to that to be parked on a new york city

street. >> how the heck would you deal with a fender-bender on that thing? >> no idea. lots of cash. >> it would be dinged by a cab in like two seconds. >> we'll be right back with more "world news now." ♪ baby ♪ ♪ ♪ catch me in the slip stream passing by the fools who just don't know ♪ ♪ you're looking at the real thing ♪ ♪ if you knew my worth, you wouldn't let go ♪ let me tell you about a very important phone call i made. when i got my medicare card, i realized i needed an aarp... medicare supplement nsurance card, too. medicare is one of the great things about turning 65, but it doesn't cover everything. in fact, it only pays up to " 80% of your part b expenses. if you're already on or eligible for medicare, call now to find out how an aarp...

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a little "charlie's angels" action for you. it premieres this thursday on abc. i'm going to watch it. it looks fun. it's set in miami instead of l.a. >> a good show to check out. there is a major development this morning that will change how we solve crimes here in america, and it revolves around how we see a crime happen. >> it turns out we're not as good of eyewitnesses as we think we are. so what's the best way to spot a crime? here's abc's josh elliott. >> number 3, step forward. >> reporter: it's been the staple of hollywood crime thrillers for decades. the line-up. a criminal sampler platter of the guilty and the innocent. and a crime fighting tool seen as increasingly unreliable. it all stems from an idea that is central to the very notion of criminal justice. the eyewitness account, something we've learned is far less reliable than we'd once thought.

put another way, if a crime's committed right now, right before your very eyes, just how much do you think you could tell us about the person who committed it? not a lot, according to new research. in fact, one new study found that eyewitnesses participating in the conventional or simultaneous line-up picked an innocent member of the group 18% of the time. almost once in every five attempts. >> assuming that he's probably there somewhere. that whoever looks most like him must be him. that's a problem attic assumption. >> reporter: psychiatrist gary wells devised a study that provides witnesses to a man planting a bomb and then fleeing. he compared the results of simultaneous line-ups with the newer method, sequential line-ups. eyewitnesses view portraits of one person at a time, not all at once. the study showed sequential line-ups resulted in an innocent person being selected just 12% of the time, an improvement of 1/3. such is the pain of jennifer thompson. in 1984 she falsely identified a man named ronald cotton as the man who'd raped her. he would serve 11 years in prison before dna evidence later freed him.

a reality she finds almost too painful to bear. >> it was like ripping open long-healed scars and hemorrhaging. i mean, it was awful. >> the main thing to keep in mind is that the correct answer in a line-up may be none of the above. >> reporter: so let's go back to our purse snatcher. we placed him in a line-up of our very own with four other guys. so take a look. a close look. who do you think it was? if you said it was this guy, you were right. and if you didn't, well, you see the problem. >> one important note. neither method has shown to be statistically superior in positive identifications of guilty parties. in fact, in both methods it happens roughly 25% of the time. far more important is keeping innocent people out of prison. josh elliott, abc news, new york. >> so how were you? did you get it? >> i got it right but i think i only got it right because they rewound -- you know, they showed it twice.

if they'd only showed me once, i definitely would have gotten it wrong. >> and there they are. the charlie's angels. look at us -- oh, that's me? >> did you know i was -- this is like a dream to see this picture. i wanted her hair. >> you look like a charlie's angel. >> thank you. >> coming up, what a diverse cast from this season's "dancing with the stars." >> and you'll see how nancy grace is using all the grace she can to compete. that's next. ♪ t.

♪ i hear that music in my dreams. last night abc's "dancing with the stars" kicked off its 13th season. all its contestants were ready

to dance for the mirror ball trophy. >> including cable tv commentator nancy grace. so how's the legal eagle from here's ross bowen from wlls. >> reporter: cha, cha, cha, cha, cha. cha, cha, cha, cha, cha. all right. my singing technique isn't quite the standard of the "dancing with the stars" band. but it'll have to do as we hook up with cable tv host and star nancy grace and irish dance man tristan mcmanus. >> at least i know the basic steps of the cha cha cha now. at least i think i do. some people would disagree. >> she's certainly doing everything i'm asking of her. so i couldn't ask to any more. what's great about nancy is she has the determination that she wants to do really well so, she'll be the one to kind of go push me more, push me more, which is great for a teacher. >> reporter: but is nancy ready for that full-on spray tan? >> what body tan? >> they haven't told you about that? >> take one thing at a time. >> i have no problem with being completely orange. i have no problem with being orange.

>> reporter: or lightly clad. >> i don't know how much more i could have shown. >> it was a short dress. >> i wasn't worried about him. >> we're going to see a lot of those, right? >> not here. >> reporter: but it's not her bust that she needs to impress the judges. grace's years in court may pale in comparison to this panel. >> which one of these judges scares you the most? >> they all three scare me. each in their own way. >> reporter: toughest competition? >> i really feel like i'm competing against myself every day when i come in here to practice. to get better and better and better every day. and that's really all any of us can offer up. is our very best on every single day. >> reporter: the lifts on the show are what tend to scare people the most. so just like in court and on her own show, she has got a game plan. >> he's not picking me up and twirling me in the air. i'm picking him up and twirling him in the air. >> reporter: now, kick that around a bit. >> so let me ask you, what have we learned? >> what have we learned? what, if anything, have we learned?

did you steal that from "swift justice"? >> reporter: i think i did. >> i think you did. i have learned that i found a new way to donate money to a children's cause. he has learned a lot of patience, i hope. and i hope i've learned the cha-cha. >> did you hear her last night? she was spinning around going tot mom, tot mom -- no, i'm just kidding. i didn't know nancy was capable of being scared of anything. >> she says she's not the prettiest, doesn't have the most body but believes she has the most heart. and fun. and yeah, that she does have. coming up, what an unpleasant surprise for a homeowner. we'll have that and more in "the papers." homeowner. we'll have that and more in "the papers."

>> announcer: "world news now" delivers your "morning papers." all right. so big news out of georgia. man comes home from a ten-day vacation. finds out that his home had been broken into. they used his toothbrush. they washed a dog in his bathroom.

and they threw a birthday party. >> and how do we know this? >> how do we know this? >> we know this because these people are on the dumbest criminals list. >> these people left behind a camera with their photos. duh. so the police figured out who they were. these people were two teens and an 8-year-old. and they were actually able to identify them. they left pictures of the party and everything they were doing. and so the parents came over and apologized. >> and the dog was at least clean. i mean, i guess that's one benefit of all this. that's really bizarre. really bizarre. >> bizarre, yeah. >> almost as bizarre as this. some people are out to get buried in the ground. others get cremated. now there's a way you can literally go green. a florida funeral home is now offering the option to liquefy bodies. essentially, it's alkaline hydrolysis, or chemical cremation. proponents say it's more environmentally friendly and gentler on the deceased while critics say it's essentially flushing a loved one down the drain.

the process works by placing a body in a pressurized drum that holds up to 400 gallons of water. a chemical is added and then heated to 350 degrees. what's left once the cycle is complete eventually makes its way into the city's wastewater system. you have no idea, folks, what's actually going down the drain. >> no kidding. your loved ones and your goldfish going down the toilet. >> let's pour some tapwater. >> another story here in illinois. a woman is having such a hard time selling her house. she offered a $1,000 bar tab at grandpa's place across the street for the person who buys their house. the sad thing that i read was a lot of the customers that first thought that, you know, $1,000 wouldn't go that far, but then they realized they were spending $50 a day there. so they thought it might actually not be so bad. 50 bucks a day at the bar. you've got a problem. >> the mortgage, the situation with real estate, how tough it is to sell your house these days. >> sure. >> here's someone you that probably have never heard of though you've likely used his creation.

his name is scott fallman, and he's a computer scientist at carnegie mellon. and on this day in 1982 he made a modest suggestion that if you don't want to be taken so seriously when you write something he said perhaps add a colon and a hyphen and a closing parentheses and when people read it sideways it will look like a smiley face. >> so cute. i was once anti-emoticons and then i just gave in and now i put little smiley faces and people think i'm annoying. i'm just trying to be happy. >> it's how you get people to realize just a joke, people. >> take it the right way. >> yeah. happy. >> it's how you get people to realize just afdfdfdfdfdfdfdfdfj

this morning this morning on "world news now," tax the rich. that's part of president obama's big new plan to cover the nation's huge deficit. >> the president says it's time the wealthy pay the same tax rate as the middle class. but will republicans support such a move? it's tuesday september 20th.

good morning, everyone. i'm linsey davis. >> and i'm andrea canning. rob and tanya are off this morning. well, the republicans refuse to consider tax increases to cover the deficit. the president says it's absolutely necessary, that the rich are not taxed at the same rate as anyone else. but does his plan have a future? also this morning the 44-year-old suburban mom accused of having sex with her son's teenaged hockey teammates. her arrest and the uproar it's causing in her southern california community. and later this half hour, how would you like to get in shape without ever leaving your desk? will you keep watching if we tell you how easy this is? we'll tell but the new office chair that's designed to tone you up while you're sitting down. what an innovation. but first, the looming showdown over the federal government's red ink. president obama wants higher taxes on the rich. >> republicans call that class

warfare. tahman bradley is joining us from washington with the details on the budget battle. good morning, tahman. >> reporter: good morning, linsey and andrea. the president was fired up when he spoke yesterday in the rose garden. he said that in order to reduce the nation's deficit everyone, including the wealthy, must pay their fair share. defying republicans, president obama called for raising taxes on the wealthy to help reduce the country's debt. even though republicans have refused to raise any new taxes, the president signaled he won't back down. >> we can't just cut our way out of this hole. it's going to take a balanced approach. >> reporter: the president wants to raise $1.5 trillion in new tax revenue by scaling back deductions for the wealthy and ensuring that millionaires pay the same rate as the middle class. >> it is wrong that in the united states of america a teacher or a nurse or a construction worker who earns $50,000 should pay higher tax rates than somebody pulling in

$50 million. >> reporter: mr. obama says he will veto any deficit reduction plan that does not include revenue. republicans quickly and strongly rejected that idea. in a statement, house speaker john boehner said pitting one group of americans against another is not leadership. >> this is not class warfare. it's math. >> reporter: if millionaires and billionaires paid the top tax rate of 35%, not all of them do now, the president's proposal would add $37 billion a year to the nation's treasury, according to irs figures from last year. in all the proposal equals $2 trillion in new deficit reduction. president obama is betting americans will side with him on raising taxes. an abc news/"washington post" poll this summer found 72% of the country supports raising taxes on high-income earners. andrea and linsey, back to you. >> thank you, tahman. there are new indications this morning that those american hikers held in iran will be released very soon.

a group of u.s. religious leaders has just returned from a meeting with iranian president ahmadinejad. they had hoped to bring shane bauer and josh fattal back with them, but despite the setback the leaders believe the two americans will be home in a matter of days. talks went late into the night at the u.n. over the question of statehood for the palestinians. secretary of state clinton said the u.s. was engaged in "extremely intensive diplomacy" over the issue. the palestinians are expected to ask for u.n. membership friday, something the u.s. will vote against. instead, washington wants the palestinians and the israelis to get back to the peace table. now to a disturbing story out of california. a mother of three arrested for allegedly having sexual relationships with at least two underage boys on her child's hockey team. she's free now after posting $25,000 bail. kabc's eileen fraire has the details from orange county, california. >> reporter: katya davis accused

of having unlawful sex and committing lewd acts with at least two boys who played with the beach city lightning ice hockey team. authorities allege the boys were her own son's teammates. 15 years old or under. when they played youth hockey at rinks in anaheim and aliso viejo. investigators say the alleged abuse in one case lasted a year and a half. >> the mother would have parties for the hockey team at her home. when either most of the hockey players would leave, as the house emptied out, there were a couple of sleepovers, and those acts occurred at that time. >> investigators say the 44-year-old divorcee lives in the home with her three children. >> there would be no indication on my part that there was anything irregular going on next door. at all. she's a good neighbor. she's a good mother. and i can't imagine that this would be something that she would do.

>> reporter: officials say the investigation began last week after one boy told his mother. investigators soon learned of the other teenager. the lewd acts in that case allegedly took place at least five years ago. the victim now 18. >> here we have, you know, a mother actually almost 50 years old engaged in illegal activity with her son's friends. it's pretty disgusting. >> reporter: this is eileen fraire reporting for abc news. >> and investigators say there may be a third victim and possibly even many more. >> well, being from canada, where hockey rules all, sadly this is not such an uncommon occurrence. >> really? >> yes. there is lots of older women ending up with the younger hockey players, a lot of parties, a lot of sort of shady things going on. >> very interesting. well, making a turn now, gay servicemen and women are now free to serve openly in the military now that the

controversial don't ask, don't tell policy has been lifted. the 18-year-old policy was officially repealed at midnight. to mark that repeal a magazine for gay and lesbian military personnel has published a photo essay. it features homosexual service members from every branch and every rank of the military. in medical news researchers have come up with an enlightening way to spot ovarian cancer, which often goes undetected until it's too late. the new method may also be used to catch other cancers early as well. more from abc's jim avila. >> reporter: it's a glow in the dark breakthrough that could forever change the fight against cancer. doctors call it fluorescent imaging. researchers at purdue university invented this technique that turns ovarian cancer cells into easy to find bright sparkling points of light. >> by seeing this tumor tissue light one a bright fluorescent light, a lot of the disease that would otherwise have been missed can be identified. >> reporter: the procedure allows surgeons to see cancer cells 30 times smaller than what

was previously possible, enabling them to find up to five times as many cancerous deposits than before. surgeons in europe are already using the purdue technique. >> we envision being able to use this strategy for about 40% of human cancers. our anticipation is that it will extend life-span. >> reporter: and similar glow in the dark surgery is being used to target other forms of cancer at the cleveland clinic. a pink and blue light dye, illuminating bladder cancer. >> our dyes are very specifically tumor targeted. the contrast that one sees with our dyes is much more stark than it is with anything else to date. >> reporter: the mayo clinic is starting to schedule this type of surgery next month. jim avila, abc news, new york. a newborn set of twins from south florida is going to have quite a birth story to tell when they grow up. their mom had two uteruses, and each of the twins was conceived in a separate womb. doctors say the odds of that happening are about 1 in 5 million. and the twins, nathan and

natalie, happened without any reproductive medicine or medical intervention. nathan was born at 36 weeks. his sister emerged two minutes later weighing five pounds ten ounces. everyone's healthy. >> and everything's fine. that is you such a weird occurrence. >> yeah. >> interesting. let's move on to weather and here's your tuesday forecast. windy with showers from bismarck to the twin cities and green bay. chance of showers from boston to d.c. thunderstorms with possible hail and gusty winds around raleigh, nashville, atlanta, and tallahassee. isolated showers in the rockies. >> 80 degrees in boise. 94 in sacramento. and 102 degrees in phoenix. fargo only gets up to 61 degrees. detroit 71 and chicago 74. mostly 70s from new york to atlanta. upper 80s in miami. we have some baseball history to talk about happening right here in new york city. it came courtesy of yankees pitcher mariano rivera, who struck out a batter to finalize his record 602nd career save. the 41-year-old ace was humble

in the victory saying thank god his pursuit of the record is over. >> his record doesn't include the 42 saves he's tallied in the playoffs. now rivero, whose nickname is sandman, says it's time to get ready for this year's postseason. sandman, do you know what that's all about? >> i guess he puts people to sleep. >> i think so. >> i'm sure somebody will e-mail in and say you have no idea what you're talking about. >> i'm into the hockey. >> i'm going to look it up and then we'll come back. >> see you in a bit. ♪ one eye open >> see you in a bit. ♪ one eye open ♪ ♪ exit light ♪ enter night

♪ oh yes it's ladies' night ♪ and the feeling's right

♪ oh yes it's ladies' night oh what a night ♪ i love that they're playing that song with the two ladies. love it. >> what aim doing here? i'm doing arm lifts with the computer. >> trying to build the biceps. >> this is what i'm doing at my desk. no, just kidding. there's actually a chair now that can give you a workout at your desk. a new invention. >> i think it's like $600 or something like that. it sounds like an infomercial essentially when you talk about it. it's called the jimmy gym. we're going to go now to kgo's carolyn johnson, she'll show us how it works. >> reporter: as director of a marketing company, jason walker is a master multitasker. but lately he's thrown something new onto his to-do list. >> to be able to just stop for a minute or two and clear your head and get the blood flowing is actually pretty invaluable. and it works because it's the thing you're sitting in. >> reporter: the thing he's sitting in is known as the jimmy gym. part office chair, part workout

center. with the turn of a knob the chair converts into a fully functional exercise machine. >> it gets you from zero to 60 pretty fast. >> reporter: everything from upper body presses to leg extensions. >> there are six handles. so it's four stations. and one band for each. and you can do roughly 16 core exercises. >> reporter: inventor adam ben david says he came up with the idea for a desk gym while he was a philosophy student in college, sitting in front of his computer for hours on end. >> after the idea started we got a few dumbbells, just kind of had those around the chair, then got an exercise band. it really just started to snowball into the whole system. >> reporter: the band wraps around a pulley system built into the chair. the user can adjust the tension by raising or lowering the seat. >> you can get roughly 90 to 100 pounds of we have thicker diameter bands and thinner ones as well. you can really dial it up all the way. >> reporter: but for deskbound professionals like jason it offers something even more valuable. convenience. >> if i had to get up, do a quick set of push-ups or sit-ups to get the blood flowing, i'm

just not going to get away from the screen in front of me. >> until they invent the chair that allows me to do absolutely nothing but have the body of a supermodel, not interested. >> i don't even know how this would work if you're trying to type and answer phones and you're busy like andrea canning. you've got to get up out of the chair. >> but there you go, andrea. >> well, i am a multitasker. >> looking good. you got the pumps on too. >> she's got a better body than i do because she's been working with the jimmy gym. when we return, our challenge goes to college. >> and you'll see how challenging it can be furnishing a student's dorm without buying anything foreign. that's next. next. without buying anything foreign. that's next. údúdúdúdúdúdúdúdúdúú

♪ born in the usa ♪ i was born in the usa

of course, millions of students are heading back to college right now. one of them already has her thinking cap on. >> motivated by abc's "made in america" series, she's asking what she and her fellow students can do to help americans get back to work. so abc's sharon alfonsi paid her a visit. ♪ >> reporter: it's move-in day at southern methodist university. a lot of boxes, sweat, and a few tears. >> i love you. >> hi, i'm monica. >> reporter: but monica resendez doesn't have anything to unpack, and not by choice. >> and we're looking for things for my dorm. >> reporter: inspired by what she's seen on "made in america," she challenged herself to furnish her dorm room with made in america items. >> made in india. >> china. >> reporter: she was upset that most of the items she found in big box stores were from foreign countries. >> these towels over here were

made in canada. >> reporter: and she was on to something. >> made in china. >> reporter: turns out the average u.s. back to college shopper is expected to spend more than $800 this season. $46 billion in total. billion. if all that was spent on u.s.-made goods, economists say that could mean almost a half million new jobs. so where should she look? why aren't american stores celebrating american products? she sent us this tweet looking for suggestions. but never expected this. >> hello. >> hi. >> hi. >> i'm sharon. mikayla? >> hi, i'm monica. >> monica. i got your tweets. >> i was hoping you would. there you really don't have anything in here, do you? >> nothing. >> reporter: her roommate mikayla was all set. turns out she got all her stuff from this catalog the university sends to all incoming freshmen. but heads-up about that catalog company. we discovered they made a

business deal with 850 schools across the country, selling their staples to hundreds of thousands of college students. and guess what? >> look at that. >> made in china. >> reporter: we poured over every single investment in that catalog, and not a single one was made in america. 6 so the deals those 850 universities made support foreign jobs. would we have better luck at the campus store? we found little things. wall pops from massachusetts. a chest of drawers in iris in wisconsin. and a shower basket from inter design in ohio. >> perfect. >> reporter: but we weren't having much luck with the big things like a comforter, sheets, or lamp. across town we hit a local department store that promised they still carried lamps made in america. we removed the foreign ones. this is what was left. >> okay. open your eyes.

>> we have two choices. >> you have two choices. >> reporter: two choices, but we were determined not to loaf monica in. -- ton leave monica in the dark. we're going to reveal what we found, what it cost, and then we're going to go to those universities and ask them why are they selling foreign-made goods and would they be willing to make the switch? $46 billion at stake. we have the surprising answers. sharon alfonsi, abc news, new york. >> so the "made in america" series continues. but coming up, reality sets in for a reality tv show. >> yes. look at those ladies. guess what? they've all been fired. so we're going to hear more about why this happened. you're watching "world news now." now." >> announcer: attention, those on medicare with diabetes. you may be eligible for an upgraded meter. >> if you're tired of stabbing your fingertips to test your blood glucose, we have news that could change your life. if you're on medicare with diabetes, then you need to know there's an alternative method for checking your blood glucose every day. you don't need to stab your fingertips anymore. the embrace meter from diabetes

care club is easier to use and nearly painless. and the best news is that diabetes care club would love to send you one of these meters. this method hurts less and because you can see and hear your results, it may be easier to understand. >> female voice: your blood glucose reading is 89. >> call now to find out why nearly a quarter of a million patients have joined diabetes care club. membership is free. so is the call. >> announcer: call diabetes care club at the number on your screen. >> talk to diabetes care club. you'll be glad you did.

here woud you go next if you had a hoveround power chair? the statue of liberty? the grand canyon? it's all possible ith a hoveround., tom: hi i'm tom kruse, inventor rand founder of hoveround., when we say you're free to see the world, we mean it. call today and get a free overound information kit, that includes a video and full color brochure. dennis celorie: "it's by far the best chair i've ever owned." terri: "last year, 9 out of 10 people got their hoveround for "little or no money." jim plunkitt: "no cost. absolutely no cost to me." breaking news...when you call today, we'll include a free hoveround collapsible grabber with the purchase of your power chair. it reaches, it grabs, it's collapsible and it's portable.

it goes wherever you go. get it free while supplies last. call the number on your screen to get your free video, brochure and your free hoveround collapsible grabber. call the number on your screen. ♪ and it goes like this ♪ moves like jagger ♪ i got them moves like jagger

♪ i got them moves ♪ ♪ i don't need to try to control you ♪ ♪ look into my eyes i own you well, it sounds like something you'd hear in "the apprentice," you're fired. but the latest real-life drama in the reality series "real housewives of" fill in the blank, this time we're talking about the women of new york. >> just as they were getting ready to fill their fifth season, four of the stars were fired. starting yet another controversy for the popular show. from russell armstrong's suicide to michaele salahi's kidnapping turned runaway fiasco it's been a rough month to be a real housewife in any city. and now four fixtures of the "real housewives of new york," fired. there's jill zeroing, queen of cat fights. >> we can never be friends. >> kelly simone, the mad model. >> alex mccord, the role model turned free-wheeled femme. >> give me a minute. >> and cindy barshop, the new girl on the block who only

lasted one season. >> it was a real disaster. >> reporter: her brother says it was a friendly departure among the other ladies. cindy paints quite a different picture, telling abc news, "following the reunion it was clear that the women genuinely didn't like each other anymore." >> i think the producers over at bravo are stirring untheir own -- bravo are stirring up their own drama with new york. >> reporter: i spoke with jill in 2009 about the pressures of reality tv fame. >> i've given this advice to other housewives. if it stops working for you, don't do it anymore. >> what has been the most challenging thing for your family in dealing with the reality show? >> there are some haters out there. does it bother me? sure, it bothers me. >> reporter: the new york castaways have plenty of company. new jersey's danielle staub and the o.c.'s lynn carton were both axed at the end of their respective seasons. while the housewives of d.c. were canceled altogether. but their most infamous cast

members are still making headlines. tareq salahi just filed for divorce after learning his beloved bride michaele -- ♪ don't stop believing >> reporter: -- had hopped out of the reality tv circuit and as seen on tmz into the arms of journey's guitar player. >> don't stop believing, tareq. >> michaele's coming home. no. >> giving him a little false hope. >> is that you in the back? i think that is you. >> yeah. >> i love the long hair. >> oh, that's me sitting down. i didn't even recognize myself. the real housewives. i love it. >> i'm going to be speaking with

this morning on "world news now," look out. there are new warnings about an old satellite that's falling out of orbit and about to break apart. >> big chunks of this giant satellite are expected to hit earth sooner than expected.

but where? it's tuesday september 20th. good morning, everyone. i'm linsey davis. >> and i'm andrea canning. rob nelson and tanya rivero are off this morning. this worn-out satellite was launched by the shuttle program back in 1991, and it served its purpose. now instead of generating scientific information, it's generating fear as it plunges toward earth. scientists are having a tough time predicting where it will land, but they say it's moving faster than they first thought. >> also this morning, bundles of joy with bandaged heads. how surgeons in london managed to separate these conjoined twins in a very delicate operation. the doctors say the surgery could not have been more complicated. we hear from the very relieved parents. and later this half hour, teachers who've made a difference. a special salute to educators, their hard work, and how they can really make a difference. you can tell us about a teacher

who made a difference in your life on our facebook page at wnnfans.com. it's our favorite story of the day. but first, scientists are now predicting a dead satellite that's been in orbit for 20 years may hit earth this week sooner than first expected. >> that satellite is the size of a bus, and scientists say pieces of it will burst into flames and fall to earth. as abc's gina senseri reports, predict where it will be is not easy. >> reporter: the crash zone of the satellite is hard to pinpoint because its path changes every hour and a half. scientists won't know where it will hit until two hours before impact. >> as it's coming back in altitude it reaches more and more drag, and so it will determine what part on the earth gets hit based on the orbit plane of the spacecraft and the rotation of the earth. >> and lift-off. >> reporter: it was launched

from the space shuttle "discovery" in 1991 to investigate the atmosphere. at that time engineers didn't know how to safely orbit a satellite once it's outlived its usefulness. now everything launches has enough fuel so it can be safely brought down in the ocean. 150 tons of meteorites large and small hit the planet every day. one was spotted over california last week. some pieces are so small they aren't ever found. but scientists say they know many parts won't burn up on re-entry. >> these 26 components which we do anticipate will survive all the way down to the surface will be going at a moderate velocity typically on the order of tens to hundreds of miles per hour. >> reporter: so pretty much the entire planet will be watching for the fiery re-entry and the odds of anyone getting hit? >> the odds of any one person out of the 7 billion on the planet being struck by one of these 26 pieces is on the order of one in 3,200. >> reporter: when the dust settles after u.r.'s crash later this week scientists want to remind us they're still

monitoring 22,000 pieces of debris orbiting our lonely planet. gina sunseri, abc news, houston. >> the satellite is only 130 miles above the earth and it's going around the planet once every 89 minutes. >> can you imagine something like that coming into your universe? >> no. >> hello. that's very scary. and the hard part is the orbit planet looks like a squiggly spyrograph so it's hard for scientists to predict where it's going land. >> and it's pretty wide, i believe as well. we could soon learn more about the fate of those american hikers held in iran. a group of u.s. religious leaders has just returned from a meeting with iranian president ahmadinejad. they had hoped to bring shane bauer and josh fattal back with them, but despite the setback the leaders believe the two americans will be home in a matter of days. seven suspected islamic extremists are now in custody in britain, arrested early yesterday on suspicion of plotting a terror attack. police also took away computers

and other evidence from more than a dozen homes and businesses in the city of birmingham. all the suspects are british residents. they are all between 22 and 32 years old. more top-level diplomatic meetings are expected today at the u.n. over the issue of a palestinian state. secretary of state clinton said the u.s. was engaged in "extremely intensive diplomacy" over the issue. washington and its allies are trying to head off a vote friday to grant the palestinians membership in the u.n. instead, they want to return to the negotiating table with israel. president obama is warning the nation it will head down "a perilous path" if its leaders do not work together to improve the economy quickly and responsibly. >> the president made those remarks at a fund-raiser here in new york last night. earlier in the day he laid out the specifics of his new plan. abc's timon bradley is joining us with more on that. tahman? >> reporter: the president was fired up when he spoke yesterday in the rose garden. he said that in order to reduce

the deficit everyone, including the wealthy, must contribute their fair share. defying republicans, president obama called for raising taxes on the wealthy to help reduce the country's debt. even though republicans have refused to raise any new tax, the president signaled he won't back down. >> we can't just cut our way out of this hole. it's going to take a balanced approach. >> reporter: the president wants to raise $1.5 trillion in new tax revenue by scaling back deductions for the wealthy and ensuring that millionaires pay the same rate as the middle class. >> it is wrong that in the united states of america a teacher or a nurse or a construction worker who earns $50,000 should pay higher tax rates than someone pulling in $50 million. >> reporter: mr. obama says he'll veto any deficit reduction plan that does not include revenue.

republicans quickly and strongly rejected the idea. the house speaker john boehner said pitting one group of americans against another is not leadership. the president is betting americans will side with him on taxes. an abc news/"washington post" poll out this summer found 72% of the country supports raising taxes on wealthy americans. linsey and andrea, back to you. >> tahman bradley in washington. sea world in orlando is defending itself against claims it violated workplace safety laws before last year's deadly killer whale incident. you might remember that trainer, dawn brancheau, was dragged underwater by the killer whale. an investigation found sea world knew of the dangers but still required trainers to closely interact with the animals. experts and brancheau's family hope the case brings that to an end. >> these are wild animals, unpredictable, predatory, thinking animals that when they decide to act out there's nothing a trainer can do. >> the family has spent a long time hoping nothing would happen like happened to their daughter, wife, and sister. >> sea world says the three safety citations against it were unfounded.

it's also hoping to either eliminate it or reduce a $75,000 fine. bob hope's widow dolores hope has passed away at the age of 102. the couple was married for 69 years when he died in 2003. dolores was a nightclub singer when they met in the 1930s. she mostly stayed home with their four children but also joined him overseas to entertain u.s. troops during world war ii. dolores hope is being remembered as the first lady of the u.s.o. another passing to note this morning. the creator of the comic strip ziggy has died. tom wilson sr. first published the hard luck character back in 1969. now ziggy and his parade of pets appear in 500 newspapers. ziggy can also be seen in books, calendars, and also greeting cards. wilson died of pneumonia at a cincinnati hospital. he was 80 years old.

he'd also won an emmy back in 1983 when ziggy starred in an abc christmas special. >> i loved ziggy when i was a little kid. his son actually now manages the comic strip, which is nice to keep it in the family. here is your tuesday forecast. windy from the dakotas to the western great lakes. expect showers in fargo, minneapolis, duluth, and green bay. spotty showers in the northeast. thunderstorms from the carolinas to tennessee and northern florida. scattered showers across the rockies. >> 63 degrees in billings, 76 in salt lake city, and 82 degrees in albuquerque. dallas heats up to 90 degrees, kansas city 80, and minneapolis 67. 69 in boston. 70 here in new york city. and 86 degrees in new orleans. last week you may have seen a story here on "world news now" about a couple celebrating their 80th wedding anniversary. well, this couple is getting close. >> fred and hazel marcone just marked their 70th anniversary. they celebrated with their family, which includes five children, 19 grandchildren, 17 great grandchildren, and one great great-grandchild.

>> that's what i want to know. they say their secret to a long marriage is to take the bumps and work them out. good advice. so congratulations to them. >> some people have a difficult time taking those words. we'll be right back. ♪ looks like we made it ♪ look how far we've come now, baby ♪ ♪ look how far we've come, my baby ♪ ♪ we might have taken the long way sthoets ♪ ♪ we knew we'd get there someday ♪

an amazing feat has been completed by a talented team of surgeons in london. all so two little girls could live normal lives. >> the twins were born joined at

the head. and after four operations totaling nearly 40 hours they were finally separated. the bbc's fergus walsh reports. >> reporter: this is now togetherness for ritag and rital, sharing the same cot. but these twins have undergone an extraordinary journey to be physically separated. born joined at the head, doctors say they would probably have died unless they underwent surgery. their parents, both doctors from sudan, can now each hold one daughter in their arms. for them it's a miracle. what was it like when the twins were able to look each other in the eye for the first time? >> it was very -- it was a really great moment in our life i will never forget. i hope that they will get a normal life and treated as normal human beings, and to forget all of the suffering times.

>> reporter: looking at the twins now, it's remarkable to think that just a month ago they were joined at the head. it's still too early to be sure, but there are no signs at this stage that either has suffered any neurological damage as a result of the separation. this was the huge surgical team at great almond street hospital who carried out four operations spread out over four months, first dividing the veins and arteries, then growing new skin to cover the skull, and finally this, the moment when the twins were separated. >> there are so many things that you have to get right in the right order. separating the blood vessels, making sure the brain is safe, reconstructing the skin. and it really has been a tribute to the team i think that we've been able to plan this in such detail and keep them safe throughout. >> reporter: a charity, facing the world, paid the medical costs and says the twins should soon be well enough to be flown

home, with the hope of a bright future. fergus walsh, bbc news, at great allman street hospital. >> that's some amazing medicine. and those twins are so lucky. only about 1 in 10 million survive an operation like that. >> and hard to believe, they're almost a year old, and they've never looked at each other eye to eye. i mean, it makes sense, but it's just not something you'd necessarily think about. and conjoined twins so rare as well, 1 out of 2 1/2 million. >> and i know twins do look at each other from very early on so, it must have been a unique experience, even for a baby that young. yeah. well, coming up, poking fun at charlie sheen, and he is taking it like a man. >> all the excitement as the new season of "dancing with the stars" premieres. stay tuned for the "skinny." tuned for the "skinny." stars" premieres.nenenenenenenee

♪ skinny ♪ so skinny and now it is time for "the skinny." "dancing with the stars" back for its 13th season. did you get a chance to watch? >> i don't really get into "dancing with the stars" so much. i actually really enjoyed it. >> pretty compelling people this

time. and it was chock full of celebrities both on the dance floor as well as out in the crowd, including the kardashians. there you see nancy grace. really showing her stuff. strutting her stuff there last night. quite a lot of big names. is that ricki lake right there? >> no, that's rob kardashian. >> that's right. >> his sisters you can see were in the audience. kim was crying and then khloe was actually yelling at the judges. they hear a voice from the audience and it's her because she likes to talk. chaz bono of course stole the show. >> look at him go. >> a lot of excitement. >> the judges loved his entertaining. i don't know if his dance moves -- i don't know how great they were. but a performer. just like his parents. right. and abc actually believes there may be some crazies out there who have a thing against chaz bono. so reports say that network execs have actually taken precautions by ordering security for chaz. similarly, they've done the same thing for bristol palin. >> she had an anthrax scare of some kind.

>> yes. well it seems everyone's talking about charlie sheen again. he's back in the news. for the right reasons, i guess you could say this time. he's not, you know, doing his -- >> winning. >> winning but not doing and saying weird things. here he is at his roast, which aired last night. and a lot of celebrities there. william shatner. there you saw kate walsh. they really let him have it. and i have to say he took it really well. >> i thought it was really interesting that mike tyson was there roasting him. one of the jokes here by seth macfarland. he said how do you get fired from "two and a half men"? they haul you in and say, sorry, you don't suck enough? that was supposed to be one of the highlights of the night. >> i was actually invited to the roast. for me it was a lot to fly all the way -- >> you were invited out to be one of the goddesses. >> yes. >> you turned -- >> i turned down both, actually. but they aired some of my interview in the roast. >> yes. >> so i made a cameo without even knowing it until i watched part of the roast last night. >> and we have a new star on

hollywood -- oh, no, actually, charlie sheen still. >> also the lawsuit. there's a lot of reports that this lawsuit that he has against warner brothers and chuck lorrie may be done soon and that he could end up a very wealthy man. one report over 100 million. so it could be a lot of money. >> now, we also have jon cryer, the actor. he has received the 2,449th star on the hollywood walk of fame. >> but here he is from the season premiere of "two and a half men," which everyone has been anticipating. and there's ashton. and charlie was hit by a subway and killed. so the opening scene is a funeral where a lot of charlie's old women are gathered around. >> they have their own little roast on the sitcom. >> what else do they have to say? >> i feel the need to thank chuck lorrie and lee aaronson. when it came time to make the ultimate decision, which was someplace that nobody wanted to go, did something that i -- in my belief saved my friend charlie sheen's life. >> jon cryer thanked charlie

sheen for being such a good partner on the show and then actually thanked warner brothers and cbs for intervening. and he feels like charlie getting fired actually saved his life. he came out there and made quite a statement. >> and the women -- we thought we were going to the women that were at the funeral of charlie. they're saying that he gave them all kinds of diseases. >> sexually transmitted diseases. it was as raunchy as it gets for the season premiere of "two and a half men." but in true charlie sheen character what else would you xb? -- what else would you expect? >> we didn't get to the salahis. >> we'll talk about the salahis later. >> when we return, we'll talk about when teachers are really the stars. stay with us.

here are some stories to watch today on abc news. asian stock markets took a hit this morning as investors react to the debt problem in greece and italy's credit rating. and the pentagon's don't ask, don't tell policy for gays in the military was lifted at midnight.

now service men and women may serve in the armed forces without hiding their sexuality. and finally, our favorite story -- >> favorite story -- >> of the day. we've got to work on that. >> we're just awful. our timing's off, everything. students are headed back to school this month. some are getting new teachers. >> while others may be taking a class with a familiar professor. either way those teachers are taking the country's greatest natural resource and helping it grow. here's abc's john donvan. >> reporter: in rooms like these across the land teachers spend more waking hours with our kids than anyone outside the home, yet boy, are teachers ever in the firing line these days. complained about as the problem, undermined as easily replaceable. but isn't it also true, maybe more true as they said at the white house -- >> he's the best. >> reporter: -- that millions of us as kids had that little moment where it was a teacher who made the difference, who showed that someone believed in us? from oprah's fourth grade

teacher who made her feel she mattered just by letting her lay out the graham crackers -- ♪ change the world one child at a time ♪ >> reporter: -- to the many testimonials people put up on youtube often set to music. ♪ i love my teacher >> reporter: to stories told at the white house like lee wono, a surgeon, and al sidelecki, his teacher. their voices can heard in the story corps project on npr where the doctor had called his teacher years later to say thanks for the inspiration and then you hear the teacher say -- >> it made me feel really important, that i had that influence on you. lately, i almost am afraid to say that i'm a teacher to some people. but i'm not because you called me. i'm a teacher, and i'm going to help as many people as i can. >> reporter: so maybe teachers are in the crossfire, but there are millions of those good kinds of stories, including that of an eighth-grader in yonkers, new york, and the nun who convinced him that he could conquer his

fear of public speaking, allowing me to now say john donvan, abc news, washington. >> what a handsome young boy. >> and i have to give a shout out to al sidelecki. i actually know him. he was a teacher at my middle school in medford, new jersey. memorial middle school. congratulations to him. >> teachers are so important. and now i have two little ones going off to school soon, reliving it all again. >> this is our question of the day, wnnfans.com. look at you. >> i'm everything today. >> more insomniacs get their news from "world news now" than from any other source. >> mun2,ed our couówntry.hththt1

8 memomrial in new york city, "1@ r@ pp# 8@x we ask that you joins s to hono remeer, , and reuntehq. çfyou can helpigd5hnojow byexting t word m"hopáe to 80088 gçive $10 making news this morning -- military makeover. gays and lesbians are now welcome to serve openly as of midnight. some troops are already taking advantage of the new policy. where will it land? a satellite the size of a bus is